upGrad acquires Unacademy in all-stock deal valuing the edtech firm at $206 million
upGrad has bought rival Unacademy in an all-stock transaction that values the latter at about $206 million, roughly 94% below its 2021 peak.
upGrad completed an all-stock purchase of Unacademy, assigning the Bengaluru-based startup a valuation of ₹19.55 billion (about $206 million), a steep decline from its 2021 high of $3.44 billion. Ronnie Screwvala, upGrad’s co-founder and chairperson, disclosed that Unacademy shareholders will receive upGrad shares, while angel investors were paid out at closing. Gaurav Munjal, Unacademy’s co-founder and chief executive, announced the closure on X, noting the company still holds roughly ₹9 billion in cash and generates about ₹4 billion in yearly revenue.
Although most of Unacademy’s units are now profitable or near-profitable, the leadership believed further scaling or a public listing would require broader educational reach, prompting the merger. Airlearn, the language-learning platform, will remain part of upGrad’s portfolio, and the Unacademy brand, along with subsidiaries PrepLadder and Graphy, will be retained. Munjal will stay on as CEO, focusing on online operations, and the combined entity plans no immediate workforce reductions.
Why it matters
The deal shows how India's edtech boom has collapsed, reshaping the sector and affecting investors and employees.
In this story
